This article outlines the cancellation policy for hosts on Drive lah. It covers when and how a host can cancel a booking, associated penalties, and exceptions.
Why Host Cancellations Matter
When a host accepts a booking (either manually or via Instant Book), guests expect the car to be available at the agreed time and location. Last-minute cancellations can severely disrupt a guest’s plans.
To maintain trust in the platform, cancellations by hosts are strongly discouraged and may result in penalties.
General Host Cancellation Rules
Once a booking is accepted, the host is expected to honor it.
If a host cancels after accepting, or is unavailable at handover time (e.g. not reachable), the cancellation is treated as a host-initiated cancellation and penalties may apply.
Cancellation fees are imposed to discourage last-minute cancellations and compensate guests for inconvenience.
Penalties for Host Cancellations
When a host cancels a confirmed booking or is not available at the time of handover, the following penalties apply:
Can My First Cancellation Be Waived as a Host?
Yes, but only under specific conditions.
As a host, you may cancel one booking per calendar month without penalty, but only if you cancel within one hour of accepting the booking.
After you use this one-hour grace cancellation in a given month, any additional cancellations even within an hour will incur a fee.
💸 Cancellation Fees (Charged to Host)
Timing of Cancellations and Cancellation Fees
More than 3 days before trip start: $20
Less than 3 days before trip start: $40
Less than 24 hours before trip start: $60
More than 30 days before trip start: waived
Standard cancellation:
If you cancel a confirmed trip for any reason, a penalty fee will be applied. Additionally, 80% of this fee is credited to the guest to compensate for the inconvenience.
Host no-show:
If you're unreachable within one hour before the scheduled trip start (by the guest or Drive lah support), it's considered a no-show.
A $100 penalty applies.
80% of this amount will be credited to the guest (unless the trip was scheduled to start within 24 hours of when it was accepted, in which case guest compensation may not apply).
A “no-show” means you were not reachable at all by the guest or customer support within one hour of trip start.
Instant Booking Cancellations (Special Rule)
If a guest books between 10:00 PM and 9:00 AM, the host has until 9:00 AM to cancel without penalty.
This exemption is limited to once per calendar month.
Guest receives a full refund, including processing fees.
Cancellations by Drive lah
In rare cases, Drive lah may cancel a trip to protect users from fraud or address trust and safety concerns.
Drive lah will notify both host and guest.
Guests receive a full refund.
Hosts are generally not eligible for earnings from such bookings.
Drive lah may allow cancellations without penalty in exceptional cases (e.g. verified emergencies), at its sole discretion.
Summary of Key Points
Hosts should only cancel trips when absolutely necessary.
Penalties apply for last-minute cancellations and no-shows.
Special cancellation rules apply to instant bookings made overnight.
Drive lah may cancel trips under specific safety or fraud conditions.
Best Practices for Hosts
Double-check your calendar before accepting a trip or enabling Instant Book.
Contact the guest and Drive lah support immediately if you anticipate an issue.
Keep your contact details updated to avoid being marked as a no-show.
Avoid cancellations within 30 days of a trip to prevent penalties.